Epithymetic
by Morivanim
Summary: Fourth in the Who Are You? series. Lisa and Spencer are getting ready for begining their lives together, but will work and fear get in the way of their happily ever after?
1. Moving on

Spencer had been acting off all day. He had forgotten to take his morning coffee with him, when he got home he had forgotten to take off his coat and had walked around in it for a good twenty minutes. And he had been bugging her about making their reservation out to dinner, which was odd because normally it was Lisa who had to remind him to get his nose out of a book and eat every now and then.

At dinner Spencer's off behavior had gotten even odder. Though he was by no means graceful Spencer had somehow managed to become a complete klutz. When he had nearly knocked over their bottle of wine Lisa had had enough.

"Spencer what is going on with you?" She eventually asked.

"What? Nothing." Lisa shot him a look and Spencer's face softened, and he seemed to relax a little bit. "I promise. I'm fine."

Lisa wasn't entirely sure she believed him, but when he reached over and took her hand in his without knocking over his water glass she decided she'd let it slide. For now at least.

It had been a year and four months since she and Spencer had finally gotten back together, or gotten over their extremely long fight, as they preferred to think of it. They had been living together for the last four, and things were going well, in fact they were going more than well, neither one of them had ever been happier.

They finished their dinner and walked home. When they got home they hung up their coats and Lisa started to go upstairs only to find herself being held back by Spencer holding her hand.

"What is it?" Lisa asked.

Spencer paused, "You look beautiful." He told her.

Lisa smiled widely, and stepped down from the stair she was on to stand on the same floor as Spencer. "Thank you." She said before wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him.

They parted and Lisa tried again to ascend the stairs, only to once again be stopped by Spencer gripping her arm. Again she turned to him this time simply giving him a questioning look.

"I've been trying to pick the best moment to do this all night." He said, looking nervous.

For a brief second Lisa had a sense of panic, the thought that he might be leaving her again flashed through her mind but she pushed it aside, waiting for all the information.

"I can't think of a better moment than standing here in our home with you." Spencer swallowed thickly, near terror coating his features and slowly he knelt down onto one knee.

Lisa stopped breathing.

With shaking hands Spencer pulled out a box from his pocket and held it up. He opened the box revealing a shining diamond ring.

"Lisa Anne Bennett, will you marry me?"

Lisa let out the breath she was holding when he finished speaking. She didn't see the box he was holding, or the beautiful ring in side of it, she couldn't move her eyes from Spencer's face as she watched his lips form each word.

Her hands were cupped around her mouth and her answer was muffled, but Spencer didn't have to wait to hear it clearly. Pulling her hands away from her face and repeated the answer.

"Yes." She waited for Spencer to stand before throwing her arms around him again, hugging him tightly. Lisa pulled back to arms-length, just far enough to give space for Spencer to place the ring on her finger. Again she didn't even notice the gorgeous piece of jewelry he had placed on her hand, all she noticed was Spencer's smiling lips, as they pressed against hers.


	2. Just a Dream

The months leading up to the wedding went by in a blur of flowers, caterers, and lists. Before she knew it Lisa was standing in front of the mirror in her childhood bedroom, draped in white running her hands down the soft silk of her dress, smoothing down imaginary wrinkles.

Her mother was in the hall on the phone with the limo company checking for the fifth time that it would be on time. While Rose still wasn't happy with Spencer's job choice, she had accepted that he wasn't going anywhere. George was downstairs having a celebratory drink with the rest of the bride's maids. Lisa had snuck up stairs to calm herself.

She breathed slowly in and out, this was it, in less than 2 hours she would be Mrs. Spencer Reid. Spencer had been called away on work a few days ago and for a while it had seemed as though the wedding would have to be postponed, but thankfully Spencer had called late the night before to let her know that they were on their way to the airport, and that he would be there waiting on the other end of the aisle for her.

Adjusting the snowflake necklace that she flat out refused to ever take off she took another deep breath and went back down with the rest of her half of the wedding party.

Her father had a glass of champagne waiting for her when she reached the bottom of the stairs, and she took it happily, a smile stretched from one end of her face to the other. Everyone immediately began to coo over her, telling her how beautiful she was, and how lucky she was. Rachel stood at her side giving her some last minute marriage advice. Everyone was smiling and laughing when the doorbell rang.

"That must be the limo." Rose said as she went to answer the door. Everyone started to rush around gathering the things they needed. Lisa picked up her bouquet from its spot on the coffee table and steeled her nerves, her smile never leaving her face.

"Lisa," Rose put her hand on her daughter's shoulder, the happy smile on her face completely gone.

Lisa tilted her head, "What is it?"

Rose opened and closed her mouth, the gestured to the door. Instead of a limo driver, as she expected she saw Aaron Hotchner standing in the doorway.

Smile still in place Lisa walked up to Aaron. No one else had noticed him, they were still getting things together.

"Agent Hotchner, what a surprise, I thought you'd be helping Spencer get ready." Lisa said.

Aaron couldn't meet her eyes.

"Agent Hotchner?" Lisa asked her smile wavering. She searched his face and noticed the tears in his eyes.

"Lisa, I…I'm sorry…"

"No," she wouldn't let him say what his face was telling her.

He didn't say anything more but he held out Spencer's badge.

She wouldn't take it.

"He was on his way to the plane." She tried to tell him.

"We were leaving the police station. The Unsub over powered one of the officers, and took his gun."

"No." Lisa told him tears starting to fall from her eyes, causing her mascara to run.

"He didn't make it to the hospital."

The bouquet fell from Lisa's hands and one hand shot to her stomach as the other went to her mouth, muffling the cry she let out. Slowly Lisa walked, wobbling, over to the nearest seat and collapsed, sobbing freely, ignoring the comforting hands that rubbed her back and held her as she cried harder than she ever had in her life.

Lisa stood silently as the pastor spoke over the casket that held Spencer's still body. She hadn't been able to breathe since the moment Aaron Hotchner had informed her of what happened. She didn't move as each person in attendance placed a flower on his coffin and offered her condolences. She was holding his badge tightly in her hands, it was all she had left of him.

She still stood there clutching the badge as they lowered the coffin and covered it, still praying for Spencer to show up at any minute and let her know that it was all a lie. But he never came, and when it hit her that he never would she fell to her knees and cried as her heart was torn apart again and again.


	3. Don't Forget

Lisa shot up with a strangled sob. Trying to catch her breath she placed a hand on her chest and looked to her side. The bed was empty and for a moment she began to panic before taking in the rumpled sheets and the smell of freshly brewed coffee wafting into the room. She brought both hands to her face and rubbed for a moment as she slowed her heart rate.

When she was calm enough Lisa slid out of bed and walked down the stairs in her pajamas. At the bottom of the stairs she rounded the corner and let out a sigh of relief as she saw Spencer, his back turned to her, washing his dishes in the sink. Quickly she made her way to him and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Good Morning." She said placing a kiss in between his shoulder blades.

Spencer turned around in her arms, a smile on his face and placed a kiss on her lips. "Good morning." Only after his greeting did he take in her appearance. Lisa's eyes were red and sunken, and there was a small tear streak near the corner of her eye.

"What's wrong?" Spencer asked bringing his hands to her face to wipe the streak away.

"Nothing, just a bad dream." Lisa told him as she tightened her grip and buried her face in his chest.

"What about?" Spencer asked concerned.

"Nothing important." She lied, as she leaned back, smiling up at him, letting him know that she was fine.

Spencer gave her a skeptical look but dropped the subject as she walked away from him to grab herself a cup of coffee. It was then that he realized she was still in her pajamas.

"Shouldn't you be getting ready for work?" He asked.

"No, Rachel's flying in today, I took the day off." Lisa reminded him.

"That's right. How long is she staying again?"

"A week and she'll be staying in the office so if you have anything you need in there I'd take it out now." She warned him.

"I think I'm good." He said leaving the kitchen for the living room.

Lisa followed and watched as he finished getting his things together and clipped his gun to his belt. It might have just been the after effects of losing Spencer in a very vivid dream, but seeing Spencer, sweet, nerdy Spencer with a dangerous weapon hanging from his hip was suddenly an extreme aphrodisiac. Lisa put her coffee mug down and walked up to Spencer, an extra swing in her own hips. She rounded him and made as though she was straightening his tie.

Using the tie as a lead she pulled lightly and brought Spencer's lips to hers, wrapping her arms around his neck to keep him there as the kiss deepened. Sooner than she would have liked, Spencer tried to pull away.

"Lisa, I'm going to be late." He told her halfheartedly trying to escape.

Lisa simply moved her lips down his neck hitting that oh so sensitive part of his neck,

"You can leave whenever you need to." She mumbled into his neck before nipping at that spot.

Spencer let out a small groan, and gave in completely, lifting her lips back to his and all but throwing her onto the couch. He could be a few minutes late.


	4. Not Quite Right

Lisa and Rachel sat together in a restaurant downtown. Lisa had her hand stretched across the table as Rachel admired her ring for the 100th time since landing.

"I just can't get over how gorgeous it is." Rachel said as Lisa took her hand back.

"I still can't believe he asked." Lisa told her.

"You're the only one."

Lisa rolled her eyes.

"You know I just want to thank you for coming out today I know you've got to be jet lagged, but it's the only day I could take off."

"Don't worry about it. This is all about you. Remember that."

Lisa smiled and they looked at their menus again .

"So sorry I'm late." A voice came and brought their attention upwards.

"It's alright mom." Lisa said smiling as her mother took the remaining seat at their table. "Mom this is Rachel, Rachel, my mom."

"It's nice to meet you Rachel, Lisa's told me so much about you."

"It's nice to meet you Mrs. Bennett"

With their party fully assembled the waitress came over and took their orders.

"So, honey have you thought about what kind of dress we'll be looking for?" Rose asked as their food was brought to them.

"Not really." Lisa told her, "Nothing real poufy though."

"I think a Mermaid type of dress would look good on you." Rachel chimed in.

"Oh that would be beautiful, and it should definitely be strapless" her mother offered.

The discussion on which type of dress Lisa should wear didn't stop after lunch, or when they reached the first bridal shop, or the second. She was aware of the fact that she was indeed shopping for dresses but, she still couldn't believe that there was that much to discuss about them. Before they entered the third dress shop Lisa had made both her mother and her matron of honor swear to say nothing more than yes or no about the dresses. They were able to keep their promise when their consultant brought out a bottle of champagne and some treats to keep their mouths occupied.

Lisa tried on several gorgeous dresses and received no's to each one, even one she had liked quite a bit. Since it was the third shop and the 25th dress Lisa was sure that she would here another no to the one she had on, but like a good bride to be she walked out of the dressing room to the room containing the mirror, her mother and her friend.

Though she had expected a reaction she had not expected it to be so strong. She heard her mother gasp, loudly as she walked out, as Rachel reacted with a soft , "Oh my God". She was afraid to see exactly how bad it was, she hadn't thought it was that bad on the hanger.

When she stepped in front of the mirror she realized that those reactions had not been of disgust. She looked every inch the beautiful blushing bride.

"Lisa, it's perfect."

She wasn't sure who had spoken, she was too busy staring into the mirror. It was perfectly formfitting, pure white, and strapless. She ran her hands down the length of the dress and felt the soft silk beneath her fingers. It was the dress.

"I hate it" Lisa said before making an immediate beeline back to the dressing room. She wanted to rip the dress off, tear it apart and burn it.

It was beautiful and perfect and exactly what she had worn in that awful dream.

She had been so impatient to get the gown off that she hadn't noticed Rachel following her.

"Lisa what's wrong the dress is gorgeous?" Rachel asked, helping her with the zipper, afraid that with the way Lisa was clawing at it, that she might damage it.

"I know, it's just, it's not the right one."

"What? It was practically made for you."

After managing to get the dress off Lisa wrapped herself in the robe they had provided.

"I know, it's just not right."

Rachel knew that something wasn't right about Lisa's reaction, "Lisa." She said, demanding to be told.

"Look I'll find another dress just as good."

"What's wrong?"

"I told you it's just not right."

"Not with the dress, with you."

Lisa sighed and looked up at Rachel. There was no need to lie, Rachel had just recently been through the same thing, she reminded herself before answering.

"I've been having nightmares." She said.

"What about?" Rachel asked sitting next to her.

"The wedding. I keep having these dreams about things going wrong and Spencer leaving again."

"Oh honey, that's completely normal."

"I know, it's nerves, but last night I dreamt that it was the day of the wedding, I was all ready to go and then Aaron shows up."

"Aaron who?" Rachel asked, interrupting.

"Aaron Hotchner, Spencer's boss."

"Lisa it's perfectly normal to have sex dreams about other men." Rachel tried to comfort her.

"No, no it's not like that, Aaron's there telling me that Spencer's been shot, and that he didn't make it, and then the next thing I know I'm at his funeral, and it all just felt so real."

"Lisa, it's just a dream."

"I know, but it really freaked me out."

"I understand, but what does it have to do with the dress?"

"I was wearing that exact dress when he showed up."

"So what you think your dream will come true just because you wear the same dress?" Rachel asked.

"I don't know, but I'm not willing to risk it." Lisa told her.

Rachel nodded, "Okay, then we'll find you a new dress."

Lisa smiled and they stood to get another dress.

"Oh and Rachel, don't tell my mom."

"Please, you think I'd tell her? She'd call off the wedding and I already picked out my dress."

Lisa smiled and laughed. "Oh, you think you get to pick your dress, that's so sweet"

They laughed and began putting on the next dress and when Lisa's mom asked about what was wrong with the last one, Rachel lied for her.


	5. Close

Spencer had only been a few minutes late to work, but with his ragged appearance he had still managed to find himself on the wrong end of Derek's teasing. That alone should have warned him of the long day ahead of him, but it wasn't until the third stack of reports taller than his head hit his desk that he realized it wouldn't get any better.

By the time his day ended Spencer was sure that his eyes would fall out and his hand would fall off from the sheer amount of reports that he had to read and write. He was the last one to leave the office, even the workaholic Aaron Hotchner had made it out before him. He was desperately looking forward to walking into his home and falling onto the nearest flat surface and sleeping for as long as he could.

When he got to his door and heard girlish giggles before he even got the key into the lock he saw all of those lovely plans flew right out the window. Steeling himself for an onslaught of energy Spencer slowly opened the door.

As he walked in and put his things down by the door he saw Lisa and Rachel, already in their pajamas, sitting on the couch the television turned on playing some movie.

"Hey Honey," he heard Lisa greet him. Both Lisa and Rachel moved from their spots on the couch.

"Hey. Hey Rachel." He greeted them as they walked up to him. He gave Rachel a hug, and a kiss to Lisa. "Sorry I'm so late." He apologized, following the two women as they walked back to the couch, taking a seat in the arm chair across from them.

"So how was your shopping day?" he asked.

"Long" Lisa said.

Rachel gave her a small shove. "It was fun."

Spencer smiled, a tired smile. "Did you find a dress?"

"Ugh no." Lisa said throwing her head back.

"We'll have to look again this weekend. I still can't believe you get weekends off." Rachel said, yawning immediately afterwards.

"Yeah well I don't get tomorrow off, so I think it's just about time for bed." Lisa said, noting that Spencer seemed to be close to nodding off in his chair.

"Sounds good to me" Rachel said as they all stood and went upstairs.

They said goodnight at the top of the stairs as Rachel went to the office and Lisa and Spencer went to their bedroom. Lisa got straight into bed as Spencer got out of his clothes and climbed into bed in his boxers.

Lisa cuddled in close to Spencer laying her head on his chest, one hand trapped in her side, the other splayed next to her head, drawing small circles on his chest.

"Long day?" she asked, receiving a small humming noise as her answer.

Spencer was exhausted and the patterns Lisa was drawing on him were having a very calming effect. He bent up just enough to kiss her on the top of her head before settling back into the pillows and quickly falling asleep.

Lisa smiled to herself as she felt Spencer's breathing even out. She lightly ran her hand down his chest and stomach and down his thigh, stopping just above his knee running her fingers across the raised, scarred skin that resided there. She went back and forth between the skin on his leg and the scar that served as a permanent reminder of exactly how dangerous Spencer's job could be.

The smile fell from her face and she brought her hand back up to wrap around Spencer's waist, holding him tightly to her as she closed her eyes, hoping to keep the nightmares away by keeping him close.


	6. Knots

The nightmares didn't go away. Every few nights Lisa would wake in a cold sweat, or halfway through a sob or scream. She had managed thus far to keep it from Spencer though. Rachel on the other hand, had run to her a few times in the week that she had stayed, calming Lisa in her panic at waking up alone, reminding her that Spencer wasn't gone he was simply at work. When Rachel left though, Lisa was left alone to deal with the nightmares herself.

The days where the nightmares did happen, always left her clinging tighter to Spencer when he came home from work, being more affectionate. Spencer had noticed, she realized this, but he of course simply chalked it up to excitement about the wedding.

It was a month away now and all of the plans were finally completed. The venue was booked, the guests had all responded, they had a band, the tuxes were on hold and Lisa's dress was one fitting away from being done. They were getting married in DC at the church where Lisa's parents had been married, but before that Rachel had insisted on giving Lisa a bachelorette party in Vegas. Ben had suggested Spencer have his Bachelor party there as well but with most of Spencer's friends living in or near DC it made more sense for them to have his party there.

Lisa stood in her dress for the final fitting knots filling her stomach. The dress was white with a mermaid silhouette, and hand stitched beading around the sweat heart neckline. Her mother put the veil on her head completing the entire bridal look. She breathed deeply, the knots growing tighter and multiplying.

"You look beautiful." Her mother told her.

"Thank you." Lisa said, not taking her eyes off the image in the mirror. She looked like a bride, she felt like a bride, but something was gnawing at her on the inside.

"You don't look happy." Her mother said, and it was true she didn't. It wasn't that she wasn't happy. Lisa was exceedingly happy to have the wedding so close. She wanted to walk down that aisle, to let everyone in attendance know that she planned on spending the rest of her life with Spencer.

"I am happy mom." She told her looking through her veil to see her mother's pursed face.

"You sure?"

Lisa wanted to sigh in frustration, but she didn't. "Yes mom."

"You know if there's something you're unsure of…" her mother didn't finish her sentence, she didn't have to. Lisa knew exactly what her mother was saying, that if she wanted to she could walk away from this entirely. She was thankful that Rose had the sense not say it outright, but she still wished that her mother would simply understand that this is what she wanted.

"I'm sure of everything mom." As she said it she knew it wasn't entirely true. She did want to marry Spencer, she wanted to walk down the aisle and spend every moment of the rest of her life being Mrs. Reid, but something was still off, and she didn't know what it was. She had tried to tell herself that it was nothing more than cold feet, but didn't people with cold feet think that what they were doing was a mistake? They weren't sure they should be getting married, and she was, so what was wrong with her?

Her mother helped her out of her dress and having determined that it was now perfectly fitted they took the dress from the shop. Her mother would be keeping it for her until the day of the wedding. There was a small thought in the back of Lisa's head that her mother might do something to the dress to sabotage the wedding, but she knew that her mother wouldn't risk it. If anything went wrong and her mother was found to be the reason, Rose wouldn't be at the wedding, and that would have crushed her.

Finishing up with her mother Lisa went home, when she opened the door she was hit with an amazing smell. Following the scent she found herself in the kitchen, Spencer at the stove.

"Mmmm…That smells so good" she moaned.

Spencer looked over his shoulder and smiled at her, "glad you think so, it'll be ready in a few."

"What is it?" she asked walking over, giving him a kiss before checking to see what was on the stove.

"Just some stir fry." He told her, putting one arm around her waist. "How'd the fitting go?" he asked.

"It went well, the dress is finally done."

"So does this mean I get to see it?"

"Yeah, on our wedding day." She said giving him a cocky smile.

Spencer smiled and took his hand back from around her, "You want to get the plates?" he asked, turning his attention back to the stove.

Lisa moved to get the plates for Spencer, who served them. They sat at their table, and ate their food and talked about their days, and all the worry that knot in Lisa's stomach simply disappeared.


	7. Worries

The knots were back in the morning, when Lisa once again woke in a cold sweat alone in bed. She silently cured her new job, and it's 9-5 hours. She missed the early morning and late night shifts in Vegas; at least with those crazy hours when Spencer was there she never had to be alone at home without him. When she had calmed herself Lisa got up and began to get ready for her day.

Though Lisa's day was only just beginning Spencer's was already in full force. He was sitting at his desk going through a pile of consultations when a smack on his shoulder pulled his attention away from the files. He looked up and saw Derek perching himself on the edge of Spencer's desk.

"Hey Kid, The Big Day's comin' up, you freakin' out yet?" Derek asked, smiling widely.

Spencer put the file in his hand down and leaned back in his chair. "A little," he answered honestly.

"Yeah? Is Lisa driving you crazy with details?"

"Actually she's been remarkably calm about all the arrangements. I mean the planner calls every few hours, but Lisa seems fine." Spencer said furrowing his brow, only just realizing how odd a phenomena that really was.

"You're kidding me, right?" Dave asked. He had been on his way to get more coffee and had overheard the conversation between the two agents.

Spencer shook his head.

"Hold on to that one," Dave told him "I've been married three times, and each time they've all called screaming and yelling because the table cloths are the wrong color or the flower order came in wrong."

Spencer shrugged, "Lisa's not the type to do that. Little things like that don't get to her."

"Lucky bastard." Dave said to himself as he walked off to get his cup of coffee.

Derek chuckled.

"So if it's not Lisa, what's bugging you?" he asked.

Spencer chewed on his bottom lip and looked up toward the office above the bull pen where Aaron Hotchner could clearly be seen through the glass windows, having a stressful phone conversation with someone or other. Derek only needed to follow his line of vision to understand his fears clearly.

"That won't happen to you." Derek said, his tone becoming serious.

Spencer turned back to Derek. "You don't know that."

Derek paused a moment. "You're the statistics man, the odds of that happening once, are small enough, for it to happen twice…"

Spencer knew the odds. He had done them over and over again in his head since the thought first popped into his head. Derek was right, he shouldn't worry, statistically that specific tragedy wouldn't happen again, but it wasn't just that. He thought about everyone he knew in the bureau, most had either been divorced at least once or had never been in a long standing relationship. Even JJ, who was in a happy loving relationship with a child, was contemplating leaving the BAU if not the FBI in its entirety to keep it that way. She hadn't said anything but all of the signs were there.

Spencer tried to shake the thoughts away as he nodded at Derek who went back to his own desk, but they wouldn't leave. Had Spencer spent too much time thinking about the odds and statistics of marriage and marriage to agents he probably would never have asked Lisa to marry him, but she had a strange effect on him, where his thoughts would slow to a normal pace, and he could keep from over thinking things. It was this effect that had let him pass by the jewelry store window, see the beautiful diamond in the window, and instinctively buy it for her. It was this effect that, when the moonlight hit her through their living room window as she ascended their staircase, had given him the courage to ask her to be his. He wanted nothing more than to be with Lisa forever but now that he almost had that chance he was terrified of just how short a time that forever might be.

Spencer checked the clock he had 3 more hours before he could leave. Looking at the pile of files in his in box he sighed, make that 4 more hours. Taking a deep breath Spencer squared his shoulders and pulled the top file off of the stack, at least his mind would be busy while he worked.


	8. Alone

There were three weeks until the wedding and Spencer and Lisa were lying together in their bed on a lazy Sunday morning. Lisa was idly tracing invisible patters on Spencer's stomach as he played with her hair. A look at the clock informed Spencer that it would only be morning for another few minutes, and the growl from his stomach that rumbled against Lisa's fingers reminded them that food was a necessity to life. Though neither really wanted to move they begrudgingly got up from their comfortable positions in bed, put the closest articles of clothing on, clean or dirty, and headed to the kitchen.

Lisa put a couple of Pop Tarts in the toaster as Spencer took his seat at their kitchen table. She walked over and sat in his lap lacing her arms around his neck and planting a soft kiss on his lips.

"I'm going to miss you." She told him.

"It's only going to be a week." He told her.

Lisa smiled and rolled her eyes. "The correct response is I'll miss you too."

Spencer snorted, "I'll miss you too."

"Good boy." Lisa told him kissing him on the nose and rising from his lap as their food finished cooking. She put the hot pastries on a plate and brought it with her as she retook her spot on his lap, offering one to him. Spencer took his pastry and began to eat it.

"So what exactly does Rachel have planned?" He asked between bites.

"I don't really know. I know that Ben's throwing a beach party specifically because I'm in town, but other than that the actual week days will be pretty average. For the actual party though all I've been told is that it will definitely involve liquor and will possibly involve half naked men who aren't you."

Spencer just nodded, " So a usual night in Vegas.

Lisa laughed, and threw a shocked look at Spencer's joke, "basically. Do you know what Derek has planned for your bachelor party?" she asked in return.

"No, and truthfully I don't want to."

Lisa laughed at the somewhat scared look on Spencer's face as she got up to put the plate in the sink. "I should probably start getting ready to go." She said looking at the clock.

Spencer followed her upstairs, where they showered got dressed and made sure Lisa had everything packed and ready to go.

Spencer left Lisa at the security gates, unable to go along with her. "Have a good time. I love you." He told her when they parted from their goodbye kiss.

"I love you too. Tell JJ, Penelope and Emily I can't wait to see them Saturday."

Spencer gave her his assurance that he would, and they shared one more kiss before Lisa got in line, where he could follow. Spencer watched as Lisa moved quickly through the line, throwing him a small wave before she went through the metal detector and he could no longer see her. Spencer walked quietly back to his car and drove home.

He opened the door and the stillness of the house hit him at full force. He tried to pass the rest of the day by reading or watching television, but nothing could help him shake the loneliness that was setting in. Spencer hated this feeling. He should be used to being without Lisa for short lengths of time. He did it every time he went on a case, but he knew those times were different. He had something to keep him occupied, and he was the one away, he wasn't sitting at home surrounded by her things and the knowledge that she wasn't with him. He knew that she was coming back but it didn't get rid of the loneliness. He wondered if this was how she felt when he went away, if it was, it was simply another reason for the knot in his stomach to grow even bigger. He couldn't help but feel guilty, as though marrying her would be a completely selfish act.

He threw an arm over the couch and knocked over a picture on the table behind it. He stood up to get the picture. As he righted it he looked at it, it was a picture of them at the company Christmas party, Penelope had taken it while neither had been looking, Lisa had talked him into dancing with her, she had her head resting on his shoulder, that permanent smile that was etched onto her face, a little wider than normal as his hand rested on the small of her back. He analyzed her body language in the picture. She was flush against him , the hand shown in the picture placed on the back of his shoulder, trying to bring him closer, and hold onto him. He smiled at the picture, she loved him there was never a need to doubt that, he just had to remember it. Sighing to himself Spencer walked up to their bedroom. A few extra hours of sleep never hurt anyone.

Lisa sat her gate waiting for the boarding call. She didn't know if she was excited or terrified of going away for the week. On the one hand when she got back it would only be two more agonizing weeks instead of three, on the other that stupid knot that kept appearing in her stomach was threatening to kick her fight or flight instincts into action, and she wasn't sure which one would win out. She bounced her knee and grabbed her bag, pulling out the book Spencer had gotten her for her birthday, _The Phrontistery_*, a book of odd and obscure words. She opened it to where she had last left off and began committing the words to memory as she waited, hoping to keep her mind busy and to make that stupid knot go away.

* * *

*The Phrontistery is actually the name of the website I like to visit to read strange and obscure words


	9. Gone

When Lisa arrived at the Las Vegas airport she had expected to see Rachel standing at the arrival gate waiting for her, maybe with Michael at her side, she did not expect just about everyone she knew in Vegas to be standing with balloons and noise makers behind a giant sign reading "BRIDE TO BE" in giant block letters. Lisa stared wide eyed with her mouth wide open unable to say or do anything at the ostentatious sight.

"Welcome back!" Rachel said, extracting herself from the crowd and running to hug Lisa, who only barely managed to shake herself back to reality.

"What is all this?" Lisa asked laughing as they walked to the crowd so that she could be mobbed with hugs and congratulations.

"We are giving you the best bachelorette week ever." Thomas told her as he let her free of his hug and passed her to Ben.

"And it starts as soon as we get you out of here." Rachel said beginning to usher everyone out of the airport and into the cars they had waiting in the parking lot.

The mob started their celebration at a restaurant, made their way to a bar, then another, then another, only stopping when their guest of honor began falling asleep between sips of her drink. Michael drove Lisa and Rachel back to their home, where Lisa's eyes were shut before her head could even hit the pillow.

When she woke up the next morning she was thankful to find herself free of a hangover, her jet lag had kept her from drinking much the night before, it had also allowed her to sleep in later than she had in months. Taking a moment to stretch, Lisa gave herself some time to wake up fully before leaving Rachel and Michael's guest room and walking down the stairs.

"Good Morning Sunshine." Michael called from where he sat on the couch reading the newspaper.

"Morning," Lisa responded.

"How'd you sleep?" Michael asked putting his paper down in his lap.

"Really well thanks." Lisa told him, taking a seat in a chair across from him.

"Good."

"So what other surprises do you guys have for my bachelorette week?" Lisa asked.

"Well tonight is fancy dinner and cocktail night, tomorrow Rachel got tickets to some kind of show, Rachel has Wednesday off so I have no idea what'll be happening during the day but I believe that night is fight night, Thursday is another drink night, you have Friday off because Saturday is the big girls' night, the details of which I am not privy to." Michael listed off.

Lisa stared at Michael, slightly slack jawed. "You're joking right?"

"Nope. Rachel has been planning this for months." He told her.

"All we did for her was a night out to see the Chip n' Dales." Lisa said.

"Yeah, well, Rachel's crazy." Michael said with a smile.

"Clearly."

"So you got any plans for the day?"

"Seeing as pretty much every other bit of my week will be taken over by hangovers and parties I guess I should go see Diana today."

"Ah yes, the mother in law, how did you get her to like you?" Michael asked, receiving a strange look from Lisa. "Rachel's mom hates me." He explained.

"Ah, she liked me before I met Spencer, plus I'm awesome." Lisa said with a smile before getting up and walking into the kitchen to make herself some breakfast.

"Well I've got to get to work. I'll see you tonight." Michael yelled as he gathered his things and got ready to leave.

"See you!" Lisa yelled back as she poured some cereal into a bowl.

Lisa finished her breakfast, got dressed and walked the few blocks to her old work place. She quickly caught up with the girl at the front desk as she checked in and quickly walked up stairs to find Diana. It took her far longer than it should have to make her way into the day room, as she kept being stopped by old co-workers wanting to catch up, but eventually she managed to find Diana sitting by the window writing in a journal.

"Hello Diana" Lisa said placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Lisa, it's good to see you." Diana said putting her hand on top of Lisa's.

Lisa took a seat across from Diana. "So how've you been?" Lisa knew exactly how Diana was; Spencer read her the letters they exchanged.

"Not too bad, although without you here, the conversation is absolutely dismal. The girl they got to replace you is absolutely atrocious."

"I'm sure she does her best."

"Let's hope not." Lisa smiled and shook her head.

Lisa happily spent the rest of the afternoon just sitting and talking with Diana, catching up with her soon to be mother-in-law, and she would have been content to spend a great deal more time there but sooner than Lisa would have liked Rachel came to tell her that they would soon be leaving for night 2 of her bachelorette week.

"A whole week?" Diana asked.

"Rachel's idea." Lisa explained.

Diana smiled and nodded her head, before beginning to stand. "That reminds me, I have something for you, wait here." Lisa did as she was told and Diana returned quickly. "This is for your wedding, don't open it until then."

"What is it?" Lisa asked as Diana handed her a small wooden box.

"You'll find out on your wedding day." Diana told her.

"Well that's just not fair, now I'm curious!" Lisa told her.

Diana said nothing more just kissed Lisa on the cheek and went back to her room. Lisa pocketed the box and left with Rachel. They went back to Rachel's house and changed for their fancy dinner and cocktail night.

Tuesday morning was the last morning that Lisa managed to wake without a hangover. She felt like she was back in college, only without having to don a pair of dark sunglasses and sit through a long boring lecture. The week had gone much as Michael had said it would. After waking up and dealing with the hang over all day Rachel would come home and drag Lisa out drinking again. How Rachel managed to make it to work every morning and be up for going out again that night, Lisa would never know.

When Friday rolled around Lisa was beyond excited to know that she did not have to go out. Instead they had a nice calm night in as Lisa helped Rachel get ready for Saturday. JJ, Penelope and Emily would all be staying with them at Rachel's house. Rachel had insisted.  
Saturday morning Rachel and Lisa stood at the arrivals gate having a breakfast of airport coffee and doughnuts while waiting for the flight from DC containing Lisa's new friends.

"So are you going to tell me what we're doing tonight?" Lisa asked, watching the people pass by.

"Nope, you don't get to know." Rachel told her looking at the board again hoping to find the flight number they were waiting for.

"Why not?"

"So, you have to go along with it." Rachel told her.

Lisa glared at Rachel. If the past week was anything to go by she would really rather be prepared for what she was getting into. She wasn't sure how much more her body could take. She looked up and the board changed again.

"There they are, gate 6."

Rachel and Lisa threw away their trash and went to collect the rest of their party. Once JJ, Penelope and Emily were off the plane Lisa made the official introductions and they made their way back to Rachel's car.

"So how's Spencer? Is he dying without me?" Lisa asked on the ride back to Rachel's house.

"Pretty much." Emily joked.

"He misses you and sends his love." JJ said.  
They went back to Rachel's and the three new arrivals settled in. Most of the day was spent just sitting around getting Rachel, JJ, Emily and Penelope better acquainted with each other. In the time that Spencer and Lisa had been together the four girls had never really met, or spent any amount of time together, but they were thankfully very quick to get along. Lisa was enjoying the low key day with her closest female friends, but she knew it wouldn't last.

As the sun began to go down everyone that Lisa knew could be found at Rachel's house. They had all been invited over for a pre party before they were all headed downtown in cabs for a night that all Vegas tourists dream of. With friends as bouncers and owners and bar tenders Lisa's memory only lasted for a few hours and was mostly full of flashing lights, neon drinks and a bunch of glitter, which seemed to have stuck with them through the rest of the night, if the clothes Lisa woke up in were anything to go by.  
All four of the girls from DC were thankful that they had booked their flight for much later in the afternoon. Though they weren't in fantastic shape for the flight home they were able to keep from needing to run to the bathroom.  
"Good lord how often did you do that while you lived here?" Emily asked rubbing the bridge of her nose hoping to relieve some of the tension in her head.

"God no." Lisa laughed. She felt like she had been hit by several trains and probably looked like it too, but she was still in the best shape out of all of them. She leaned down to get a book from her bag, holding back the urge to vomit, and her hand brushed against something hard. Confused she picked up the object. It was the box that Diana had given her. Suddenly she remembered why she was going back to DC. She was going back to marry Spencer, to become Mrs. Lisa Reid. Suddenly the nauseous feeling she had intensified. She could feel her skin get clammy.  
"Oh God, bathroom." Lisa said before picking up her bag and walking as quickly as she could manage to the restroom. She ran into the first available stall and emptied her stomach.

When she was done she wiped her mouth and sat down on the floor, back against the stall wall and closed her eyes. She tried to calm herself down but couldn't quite manage it. In two weeks she was getting married. She started breathing heavy. She looked through her bag again and picked up the box Diana had given her, she flipped it over in her hands a few times.

"Flight 436 to Washington D.C. now boarding."

Lisa looked up as she heard the announcement. She sat their until it sounded again, then she grabbed her bag, got up and walked out of the bathroom.

"Where's Lisa? The plane's about to leave." Penelope said sounding scared.

"Don't worry I'm sure she'll be here." JJ said assuringly.

"I should have gone to check on her." Penelope worried.

"Don't worry. She's probably on her way now." Emily told her as she moved her things around in the overhead cabin.

"Miss if you could please take your seat, we're about to take off." A flight attendant said to Emily. Emily tried not to let on how nervous she was, but it didn't work. The nervousness continued to increase between the three of them until the plane took off, Lisa nowhere in sight, and then they all began to panic.


	10. Fear

JJ was already planning on buying a ticket back to Vegas to find Lisa and the plane had only barely taken off. Penelope was in full freak out mode, with Emily trying her best to calm her down.

"I can't believe we left her. What if she's lying dead in the bathroom, or was kidnapped, or what if..."

"Garcia, calm down I'm sure she's fine."  
"As soon as we can use our phones I'll call her." JJ promised Penelope, and she was true to her word. As soon as the flight attendants told them they could turn their phones back on JJ had hers out and booting up. As soon as it was on JJ saw a missed message from Lisa.

"Look I have a message from her. I'm sure this will clear everything up" JJ said as she began to listen to the message.

"Hey JJ. Sorry I missed the flight, guess I wasn't feeling as good as I thought. Let Penny know I'm alright and I'm taking another flight out and will be back by Monday night. If one of you could pick up my bag at baggage that would be amazing. I've already called Spencer to let him know I'm gonna be another day, and he's still gonna pick you guys up so you can just give the bag to him. Thanks, and I'll see you guys when I get back. Love you all."

JJ told both Emily and Penelope what Lisa had said in her message and thankfully they all calmed down. Once they landed they got all of their bags and met Spencer who was there to pick them up, just as Lisa had said he would be. Penelope kept apologizing, and Spencer kept telling her that it was alright.

After everyone was dropped off Spencer went home and brought Lisa's bag with him. He left it closed next to the closet. He stared at it wondering if he should unpack it, but decided not to. She would be back soon enough, besides he didn't like going through other people's things, even Lisa's.

When he had gotten Lisa's call he had been upset, not that he wanted her to know that. He was really missing her, and had been counting the days until she returned. He couldn't wait to see her again, but there was nothing that he could do.

The whole week that she had been gone had left Spencer feeling more lonely than he had been in a long time. The house was too quiet and the bed too cold. He had been hoping they would be called out somewhere just so that he wouldn't have to go home at the end of the day, but they weren't and so he did. Each night. He had called Lisa a few times but it seemed that Rachel had made it her mission to have Lisa either drunk or hung-over 24/7, so the conversations were never long, and only made him miss her more. Spencer sat on the edge of his bed, sighed and set his alarm, what was one more day?  
One more day turned into two. The next day around noon, Lisa had called to tell Spencer there had been a mix up at the airport and she wouldn't be able to get another flight until Tuesday. Spencer was okay with that. It was still just one more day, and these things happened sometimes.  
On Tuesday morning though, two days turned into three and now Lisa wouldn't be home until Wednesday. Somehow there had been another mistake. Spencer was skeptical and had tried to ask a few questions but Lisa had simply cut the conversation short. After that Spencer was concerned. He knew exactly how many flights came out of Vegas daily and the likelihood that she couldn't get another one that day was minimal. But when three days turned into four and again Lisa tried to shrug it off Spencer knew that it wasn't airport error causing Lisa to miss her flights. It had been his biggest fear and it seemed that slowly it was coming true, Lisa might not come back. He had gotten the call just as he was leaving work and the look on his face had been enough for Penelope to go straight back into her office and hack into the Vegas flight database.

"Penelope, really you don't have to do this. I'm sure everything is fine." Spencer tried to lie.

"Baby I love you and I love Lisa but this is just weird. Airlines do not mess up this often." Penelope said as she typed away looking for something.

"Penelope please." Spencer pleaded. Penelope stopped and turned around in her chair. "Please don't do this. She's coming home tomorrow." He tried to sound sure, but the fear in his eyes showed through.

"Okay." Penelope said quietly. The look on Spencer's face was what stopped her. She knew that he was thinking the same thing she was and that unlike her, he didn't want to know if he was right. He didn't want to know whether or not she was leaving him, he just wanted to hope that she wasn't. "Just let me shut this down. I'll meet you at the elevator. "

"Thank you." Spencer said and walked out of the room.

Penelope turned back to her computer and pushed another button. A big flashing window appeared on the screen.

"Passenger not found."  
Penelope hung her head. "How could she?" she whispered to herself before shutting off her computer and going to meet Spencer.


	11. All For You

Penelope didn't know what to do. She knew that Lisa hadn't booked a flight back to D.C. That she might not ever book a flight back. She couldn't believe it. She didn't want to believe it. Spencer was like a little brother to Penelope and the thought of him being hurt like this, being left like this, it made her insides boil. She couldn't sit back and watch this happen. She just couldn't. She picked up the phone and dialed Lisa's number.

"Hi, you've reached Lisa, leave a message. Beep."

"There had better be a good explanation as to why your name is not on any flight lists for tomorrow. Spencer thinks you're coming back tomorrow and if you're not coming I need to know. I swear to God if you hurt my baby boy I will make sure you regret it for the rest of your life."

She hung up and stared at the phone. She was scared and angry but most of all she just wanted answers, answers for Spencer and also for herself. This wasn't like Lisa. Yes she could have her flighty moments, forget a lunch meeting every now and then, or decide to go somewhere else on a whim. It was what made Lisa, Lisa, but this this was wrong. Lisa had been so excited to marry Spencer it didn't seem right that she would leave like this.  
When Penelope woke up in the morning she still hadn't got a response from Lisa. For the rest of the day she kept checking her messages as well as the Las Vegas flight database every few minutes. It was difficult to concentrate. By 11:00 Penelope had decided that if she didn't hear from Lisa soon, she was telling Spencer what she knew, no matter how much it might hurt him to hear it, it was better than waiting around. It had to be.  
At noon Penelope couldn't wait any longer. She left her cave and slowly walked out to Spencer's desk, planning out what she was going to say on the way there. She stopped mid-stride though when the elevator at the end of the hall opened up and Lisa stepped out into the hallway.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she said before she could stop herself.

"Nice to see you too Penny." Lisa said.

"How are you here right now?" Penelope asked, unable to get off of the topic.

"I took the elevator." Lisa said motioning to the machine behind her.

"But you were never on a flight."

Lisa's eyes went wide. "You checked on that?"

"Didn't you get my message?" Penelope asked.

"No, my phone charger was in my checked bag, my phone hasn't worked since Tuesday. I've been using Rachel's. What did it say?"

"I asked why your name wasn't on any flight manifests."

Lisa looked around and pulled Penelope off to the side. "I didn't fly back." She admitted.

"Then how did you get here?"

"I drove, Rachel came with me, please don't tell Spencer." Lisa asked looking panicked.

"Why don't you want him to know you drove?" Penelope asked.

"It's part of a surprise for him." Lisa said.

"What surprise?"

"You'll find out" Lisa said with a smile, "Just promise you won't tell him."

"Okay I promise." Penelope said. Seeing Lisa back, with an explanation, relieved Penelope, now though she felt bad about how angry she had been in her message to Lisa. "As long as you promise to delete the message I left you."

"Deal." Lisa smiled.

"It's good to see you back." Penelope said before grabbing Lisa and hugging her.

Lisa smiled and hugged her back as the two walked into the bull pen together and over to Spencer's desk.

"Ready for lunch?" Lisa asked as soon as they were in ear shot of Spencer.

"Hey," Spencer said standing up and walking over to Lisa. For a moment he forgot where they were and he grabbed Lisa in a hug and kissed her hello.

The pulled apart as Penelope and Derek made some rather lewd comments and Spencer's face was bright red. Spencer cleared his throat, "So how was your flight?" he asked as he got his bag and after giving a shy wave to everyone left with Lisa for their lunch date.

"It was alright." Lisa said, "But I'm glad to be back." She put an arm around Spencer and leaned her head on his shoulder.

"Told you there was nothing to worry about." JJ said to Penelope who just rolled her eyes and asked who else was up for some lunch.


	12. So Close

The next few days after Lisa got home flew by. Lisa was spending a lot more time at work than she normally did, she even picked up the weekend shift as an apology to her boss and also because with the wedding coming up she was also about to take time off for their honeymoon. Spencer just felt better knowing that Lisa was home. He had truly been afraid she wasn't coming back so when she had called him last Thursday morning he had been ecstatic to hear that she was back.

Spencer woke up early Wednesday morning and laid there for a moment just watching Lisa sleep. He had already been sleeping when she got back from work the night before. Before he got out of bed he kissed her quickly before he got up and left for work.  
Lisa stirred slightly when Spencer kissed her but didn't wake up. When she finally did wake a few hours later Lisa was still tired. It had been a long few days with work, and meeting up with Rachel. Lisa was lucky that Spencer's job kept him busy too, because it made it that much easier to keep her secret from him. Lisa had an amazing surprise for Spencer and she couldn't wait to give it to him, but it would still have to wait another four days, until the wedding on Sunday. Lisa rolled out of bed with a smile on her face and got ready for work.

Spencer had also gone into work with a smile on his face, unfortunately that smile was quickly wiped off his face when he saw what was in store for them. It couldn't be passed off, they had to go. Things had been going so well it was really only a matter of time until this happened. Spencer sent Lisa a quick message saying he wouldn't be home for dinner, grabbed his go bag and headed for the jet with the rest of the team.

"Looks like I'll be here for dinner tonight." Lisa said as she read the message.

"I thought you and Spencer were meeting up?" Rachel said as they sat in the break room.

"We were, but I guess it's a work thing." Lisa said. Lisa felt that small knot that had completely left her while in Vegas form again in the pit of her stomach.

"Everything will be fine." Rachel told her, not needing to be told what was going through Lisa's mind. They both knew what Spencer did for a living, what "a work thing" meant, and how that vivid dream of Spencer going off just before their wedding was still far too fresh in Lisa's mind.

"Want to stay at mine instead of in the hotel tonight?" Lisa asked.

Rachel accepted the invite, more for Lisa than for herself.

Everyone was working twice as hard as normal, determined to find the unsub as fast as possible, not only for the families affected by the man's actions, but also to make certain that they would make it back in time for Spencer's wedding. Aaron had already informed Spencer that no matter what he would be on a plane back to D.C. Saturday night, unsub or no unsub, but they all hoped it wouldn't come to that. When Friday morning dawned and Spencer was still hunched over a pile of paperwork at a desk in Alabama he was afraid it would. There was no way he could go back to D.C. and get married knowing that this guy was still out there, with everyone he cared about aside from his family, and soon to be family, out here hunting. 

While Lisa was happy to be spending time with Rachel in her home, not having to hide her being in the city, she was also nervous about Spencer not being in the city. It was Friday night and she had been checking her phone every few minutes all day. There were two days until the wedding, and Spencer wasn't there. Her nightmares had come back, and this time it was always the same one. It was the one of her in the perfect white dress where Aaron Hotchner showed up at her door and handed her Spencer's badge.

At exactly 10:37pm all of her waiting paid off. Her phone rang and Spencer's name showed up on the caller id.

"Spencer" Lisa answered hoping she didn't sound as relieved as she felt, about hearing his voice.

"Hey, guess what, I'll be home for our wedding." Spencer told her sounding as excited about the news as she felt about hearing it.

"That's great."

"Yeah, we're getting the first flight out in the morning."

Lisa's smile faltered as she heard a siren leaving in the background. "That's great. Spencer where are you?"

"I'm getting ready to head back to the station to finish some paperwork." He told her, and she knew, without him saying so, that they had only recently caught the unsub, and suddenly her dream came flooding back. _"The unsub overpowered one of the officers and took his gun."_ Lisa shook her head.

"Okay well call me before you go to bed okay?" she said.

"I will. I love you." He said.

"I love you too." Lisa smiled and hung up the phone. Spencer was okay he was safe and he was coming home. She didn't expect him to call until sometime in the early morning so Lisa turned the volume up so she wouldn't sleep through the call and decided to take a small nap before she got to talk to him again.

It was daylight out when Lisa woke up. She looked at her phone cursing herself for being such a deep sleeper only to realize that she hadn't slept through Spencer's call. Spencer had never called her.


	13. Bachelor

Spencer often stayed up insane hours after a case finishing paperwork, but his limit was normally around 4 in the morning, after that he always slept for a little while. When he stayed up that late he was always exhausted and more often than not would simply pass out on top of his work, and normally this is what Lisa would rationalize as having happened and she would go on with her day. But last night she had had the dream again and Spencer wasn't back yet.

The early flights for the jet always left where ever they were at 7am sharp meaning that Spencer should have landed around 10:30, but it was 11:30. Spencer at least would have called to say he was back, but she had no missed messages. Lisa felt herself begin to panic.

She calmed herself down and dialed Spencer's number. Her hand shook as she listened to it ring. Once. Twice. Three times.

"Hello?" A groggy voice answered, and Lisa let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding in.

"Spencer. Hey babe where are you?" Lisa said.

"Lisa? What…What time, oh shit I forgot to call you last night I'm sorry." He said slowly waking up.

"It's okay. I thought you said you were getting the first flight out this morning." She said, as she walked downstairs to make some coffee, feeling better after hearing Spencer's voice.

Spencer cleared his throat. "Yeah, no, we were well I thought we were. Morgan decided to continue on with my Bachelor party while we were here, so he scheduled the flight for this afternoon instead."

Lisa sank down into a chair while she let the coffee brew and let out a breath. She had never been so relieved, everything was okay, Spencer was fine, and he would be home that afternoon. "You'll have to tell me all about it when you get home."

"Yeah," Spencer said. She could hear him shuffling about in his hotel room, probably trying to figure out how to get his own coffee. "Wait, aren't you going to your parent's this afternoon?"

"Shoot," Lisa exclaimed. She had forgotten about that. Her mother had been absolutely adamant that the two of them spend a full 24 hours apart before their ceremony, it was something she wouldn't budge on, and since she would be getting ready at their home anyway, it had only seemed right that she stay there. She was expected to be there at one. Lisa groaned, and she head Spencer chuckle. "Well you can still call and tell me all about it."

"You think your mom will allow that?" he asked.

"She'd better." Lisa smiled into the phone. She could hear how hung over Spencer was, but she really didn't want to get off the phone with him. Hearing his voice was the only thing keeping her nerves at bay, and she really did need to get ready to go to her parents. "I'll let you get some rest, but call me as soon as you land. No excuses okay?"

"No excuses." Spencer repeated. "I love you."

"I love you too." Lisa said before hanging up the phone.

She sat in the kitchen waiting for her coffee to finish brewing. She felt a great deal better having spoken to Spencer. He was fine and all he had to do was sleep until he boarded the plane that would take him home. She didn't like that she wouldn't be there to greet him when he got home, but she really couldn't deny the one thing her mother had specifically asked for, well demanded really. It was the one thing that had caused a serious fight during the wedding planning, the two of them had screamed and yelled at each other about it until they were horse. Rose was far more superstitious than Lisa, and Lisa still wasn't willing to admit how badly her nightmares had been effecting her, which led to the two of George had been forced to side with his wife instead of his daughter. Even as she tried to use the "it's my wedding" card.

After getting her coffee Lisa headed back upstairs to finish packing for her night away. She just had to get through this one night and everything would be fine.


End file.
